The Ninth Sounding

The Ninth Sounding takes its name from an old harbor survey marker, the ninth depth sounding recorded along this stretch of quay. The marker was moved years ago, but the name stayed. Locals insist the surveyors found deeper water here than anywhere nearby. Sailors from out of town usually assume the name refers to nine ships lost in the harbor, a story the regulars enjoy correcting only when they feel like it.

Tavern · kept by Greda Kostic

The Ninth Sounding

The Ninth Sounding takes its name from an old harbor survey marker, the ninth depth sounding recorded along this stretch of quay.

Overview

History

Quirks

The floorboards rise and settle with the tide, making loose tankards creep slowly toward the harbor-facing wall. On storm nights the keeper hangs a brass spoon above the door; it rings whenever a wave strikes the old piling outside.

Rooms and services6

HarborboardInformation service
A salt-stained common room with broad windows facing the piers. A chalkboard lists which ships are hiring, delayed, or overdue.
Crew roomsLodging
Six narrow rooms with sea chests, wool blankets, and shutters that can be dogged against storm spray. Two rooms have connecting doors for crews.
Tide stepsMooring
A covered platform above the tide line where sailors can tie off small boats. The keeper charges extra for overnight mooring and keeps a watch during bad weather.
Quay-side stableStable
A sheltered corner with a hitching rail, feed bins, and a roofed stall for pack animals. There is no room for large wagons.
The slate tableGambling
A scarred table where regulars play dice, knucklebones, and a local card game. The house takes a modest cut, and arguments are settled outside.
Low stageEntertainment
A compact stage for sea shanties, news-songs, and the occasional visiting storyteller. Performers get a meal and a share of the evening's collected coppers.

Quay-smoked mackerel4 silver
Main Course
Smoked over driftwood and served with coarse mustard and a heel of brown bread.
Watchman's chowder5 silver
Food
A thick bowl of white fish, onions, and potatoes simmered in milk, filling enough for a long watch.
Herring on rye2 silver
Appetizer
Rye bread topped with pickled herring, sliced onion, and a sharp herb dressing.
Crab-and-leek pasty3 silver
Food
A hot pasty packed with crab, leek, and pepper. The crust is sturdy enough to carry aboard ship.
Sounding Ale4 copper
Drink
A dark, malty ale from inland, served cool from a cask kept below the floorboards.
Dockside grog6 copper
Drink
A small glass of spiced rum diluted with hot water and lemon. The keeper says it warms the hands as well as the throat.
Tide cakes3 copper
Dessert
Sweet oat cakes baked with dried apple and a little honey, served in pairs.

People

The keeper and 6 patrons

KeeperGreda Kostic
Human rogue, level 5
Harbor pilotGrzena Vask
A sharp-eyed human pilot, about 4th level in experience, who remembers every debt and every safe channel. She speaks bluntly but quietly.
Sailor between voyagesBorek
A broad-shouldered dwarf deckhand, roughly 2nd level, delighted by gossip and not especially careful about who hears it.
Cargo brokerKetta Drov
A guarded half-elf factor with the composure of someone used to bargaining under pressure. Around 5th level in capability, she watches the room while pretending to read shipping tallies.
Acolyte of a sea and storm deityPavel
A young human shrine attendant, inexperienced in a fight but stubbornly brave. He is earnest, curious, and easily drawn into sailors' tales.
Traveling repairerTupaq Sori
A seasoned gnome tinkerer, about 3rd level, who mends nets and small mechanisms for coin. Cheerful until someone asks about the brass compass under his coat.
PerformerZora Kelm
A tiefling musician and former privateer, perhaps 6th level, who sings old work songs with a dry wit. She is friendly, but never gives the same account of her last voyage twice.

Keeper's Species

Human

Intrigue

Intrigue · GM only

What locals say

The pub stands where the quay bends around an old stone piling, close enough for sailors to hear the bell buoy on foggy nights. Its regulars include deckhands, fishmongers, pilots, and crews waiting on a berth. Stories of sea hags, wreckers, and things glimpsed under the waves are common talk here, though no one agrees on which stories are true. The Ninth Sounding is a useful place to find passage, rumors, and work, but a promise made over its counter is expected to be kept.

Plot hooks

1The party is offered passage on a fishing vessel whose captain refuses to sail until someone investigates a bell ringing beneath the water at low tide.

2A dockworker quietly asks the party to watch the tide steps at midnight and identify who leaves the sealed crate. The crate may be bait, evidence, or something alive.

3A cargo broker offers a reward for recovering a missing ledger from a grounded coastal ship. Several crews are already asking after the wreck.

4A storm has stranded a group of sailors in the pub, and one claims their ship's navigator deliberately steered them away from a safe harbor. The navigator is sitting at another table.

5A performer recognizes a party member from a song she heard in a distant port, though the details are wrong in a way that suggests someone has been asking after them.

The Ninth Sounding

The Ninth Sounding

Overview

History

Quirks

Rooms and services6

Menu

Skipper's catch

People

Keeper's Species

Intrigue

What locals say

Plot hooks

Media

Turn The Ninth Sounding into a sheet